After battling through an array of injuries this season, the wrestling team looks toward setting aside those adversities when it takes to the mat Saturday as the host of the ACC Wrestling Championships in Reynolds Coliseum.
The Pack (8-13) is coming off an 18 day lay off since its last match, a dual meet against in-state foes Davidson and Campbell on Feb. 16. The team turned in a strong performance, winning its final two matches to end the regular season on a high note.
“We’re as prepared as we can be,” coach Carter Jordan said. “The coaches have done a great job with getting our guys ready.”
Without the services of several key starters from the beginning of the season due to injury, the Pack has been forced to rely on young talent such as freshmen heavyweight Eloheim Palma and 133-pound freshman Dale Shull.
Palma, the 2009 high school national champion from nearby Cary High, set the Wolfpack record for wins in a season by a freshman heavyweight with 22.
He hopes he can follow in the footsteps of his brother, former State wrestler Jainor Palma, who won the 2007 ACC heavyweight championship in the very same venue Eloheim will be competing at on Saturday.
“I was blessed enough to see my older brother win an ACC championship here in Reynolds,” said Palma. “It’s going to be strange for me to be on the same mat but I am definitely looking forward to it.”
Along with Palma, Shull is another freshman looking to make a statement in his first ACC tournament. Shull has a 17-14 record on the year and is 3-3 since dropping down to the 133-weight class, where he said he has felt much more comfortable.
“I’ve been a bit inconsistent lately, losing matches that I should not,” said Shull. “This weekend I really hope I perform to my potential, which I know I can do.”
In preparation for the tournament, the team has been watching film of every individual wrestler they will be competing against in order to find their strengths and weaknesses.
Sophomore 149-pounder Bobby Ward (23-7), the Pack’s most consistent wrestler this season, is focused on winning his weight class and earning an automatic spot to compete in the NCAA championships in Omaha, Neb.
“I just want to go out there and wrestle tough,” Ward said. “If I keep doing what I’ve been doing up to this point in the season, hopefully everything will work out.”
Although the season may not have gone as planned for the Wolfpack, spirits are still high, as up to five wrestlers have a legitimate shot at winning their weight class, according to Jordan.
“I think Ward, Palma, Shull, Quinton Godley and Colton Palmer will all wrestle really well in the tournament,” said Jordan. “They’re gamers. They get after it and give you everything they have, which is what it takes to win on this level.”
In the end it comes down to lining up and wrestling, but competing in front of the home crowd will surely be beneficial for the Pack.
Doors open at 10 a.m. Saturday morning at Reynolds Coliseum with the first round beginning at 11 a.m.
“We’ve really busted our butts and put our blood, sweat and tears into this,” Palma said. “It would be a shame if we didn’t show up this weekend and achieve what we set out to accomplish.”
